Lorne Wiebe is a well known former Cornwall broadcaster. Even though he now calls Ottawa his home, he has a special affinity for Cornwall and SD and G. He now works at Rhodes & Williams Insurance Ltd. and partners with the local business community to help them deal with their day to day risks. If you have questions or wish to contact Lorne, you can email him at lwiebe@ourhometown.ca

Digging for Holes

Lorne Wiebe

OurHometown.ca

It might sound a little funny if you were to tell someone that you are busy “digging for holes” but that’s a skill you practice everyday if you own a business. Part of the boss’s job is to snoop around and identify any holes in your operation; issues which could seriously harm your company.

Ottawa - March 22, 2012 - It might sound a little funny if you were to tell someone that you are busy “digging for holes” but that’s a skill you practice everyday if you own a business. Part of the boss’s job is to snoop around and identify any holes in your operation; issues which could seriously harm your company.

For example, if you’re a manufacturer and rely on a single market for your product, that might be a serious hole to plug. After the Japanese earthquake and Tsunami, some automotive parts manufactures watched helplessly as their one and only market was unable to take delivery. It soon became apparent which companies were prepared with alternate markets for their product and which ones weren’t.

Your business might face other risks. If you suffer an equipment breakdown, you might be able to handle the downtime for a few hours or perhaps a day but what if your operation relies on custom designed CNC machines and the entire system conks out? Then what? It could be a week before you’re back to full capacity. How do you plan to recover from five days of downtime?

The key to planning for the worst is to imagine the worst and then strategically prepare for it. When it comes to each risk, you need to determine if that risk can be eliminated or its effect reduced. Sometimes we need to accept that certain risks can’t be avoided. In that case, a good workaround might be to lessen its impact by transferring the risk onto the correct insurance product. That way, if your custom designed production line dies, your insurance could help bridge the gap until you’re back up and running.

All of this points to why it’s so important to develop a solid relationship with your insurance broker. Both you and your broker need to grab shovels and start digging for holes. Your broker needs to fully understand how your business operates and the threats it faces and what those impacts would be. Only then can he or she custom design the right insurance program for your company.

Each business is unique and one plan will never fit all but the strategic planning process remains the same. Imagine the worst case scenario and then create a counterbalance to it. You’ll sleep better at night.

Presented here is a general article about insurance. The discussion is general in nature, and does not constitute insurance advice. This is not intended to be a description of coverage, and does not include details of the coverage nor the terms, conditions, qualifications, limitations and exclusions applicable. Policies should be reviewed in their entirety and related to your specific operations. Many insurers permit changes (Changes to insurance policies are usually called "endorsements" or "riders") in their limitations or exclusions to match your specific requirements. As insurance advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each situation, nothing provided herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of a competent insurance broker. IN NO EVENT WILL RHODES & WILLIAMS LIMITED BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER, INCLUDING SPECIAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THE INFORMATION PRESENTED IN THIS DOCUMENT.

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